


The Anarchist: An in depth psychological profile Of Julianne Richards

by Harley_Quinn13



Series: The Clock is Ticking [1]
Category: Watchmen (2009), Watchmen (Comic)
Genre: Anarchy, Angst, Anti-Hero, Blood and Injury, Bombing, Bombs, Crime Fighting, Drama & Romance, Eventual Romance, F/M, Falling In Love, Fighting, Forbidden Love, Handcuffed Together, Hate to Love, I'm Sorry, Innuendo, Jealousy, Killing, Love/Hate, Thief, Villains to Heroes, What the fuck Richards, chaotic - Freeform, chaotic neutral
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-27
Updated: 2019-02-07
Packaged: 2019-03-10 01:25:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13493900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harley_Quinn13/pseuds/Harley_Quinn13
Summary: This biography follows the life of the dangerous criminal Julianne Richards, also known as "Anarchist." It explores her motivation in the criminal underworld as well as her relations with other criminals and where her loyalties truly were. With the help of Dr. Arleen Stephens, we were able to get a deep and full understanding of Julianne's psyche and the complex nature in which she worked.*All events in this story are fictional. This is NOT a real biography.*All Watchmen characters belong to DC Comics and Alan Moore.*Julianne Richards/Anarchist is a character of my creation.





	1. An Introduction To Julianne Richards and the night she met The Comedian

  The night they met was a relatively peaceful night, which, for New York, was odd in itself. Cars zoomed by on the streets below, and the lights illuminated the rather dark sky above them. The moon was full on that particular night and the sky was clear aside from a few stray puffs of cloud. The weather wasn’t too bad, either, and suited tonight’s festivities.

  A shadow slipped out from the window, a bag gripped tightly in their hand as they crouched in the shadows that surrounded them. A thief was at work on this almost perfect night.

  She was careful not to leave any evidence, but of course, she was only sixteen.

 

**-A note from Dr. Arleen Stephens; Julianne’s psychiatrist:**

**One may ask why such a young girl would be doing something like this. Well, the answer is simple: she was bored, or at least, that’s what she confessed to me several times. To put it simply; it was a problem she had. One could argue that the girl was a kleptomaniac but… it wasn’t quite that simple. She did enjoy stealing things and generally enjoyed the rush she got off of committing a crime, but—as time went by—it became obvious that she just enjoyed stirring up as much chaos as she could.**

  Julianne Richards got her start as a criminal when she was only sixteen. She began as a simple thief and climbed her way up the ladder in the criminal underworld by committing more heinous acts, thus making others fear her. But by daytime, she was an innocent young woman.

The girl, however, was far from innocent. She ended up doing awful things in her criminal career, but in the terms of that night, she had taken thousands of dollars’ worth in jewelry. When compared to her future in crime, this would be considered nothing. However, that same night, she lost every single piece of jewelry she had stolen. This night would mark a change in Julianne Richards’ behavior.

 

**-Another note from Dr. Arleen Stephens:**

**Many attribute this change in behavior to the introduction of a vigilante into her life. I agree with this belief. The only problem, though, is that it cannot be proven. Julianne had never admitted to whether or not she did most of the things she did because of Edward Blake, but, I do believe that he had something to do with the violent turn she had taken in the severities of her crimes. She went from a relatively harmless thief to one of the US’ most wanted criminals. I must admit, I was shocked when I heard the news that she was behind those bombings. She never spoke about having the knowledge to do something like that, she never seemed to want to talk about random violent urges. Which led me to believe that, like most young women, she was looking for attention from the only person who had dared to tell her no.**

**I might not have mentioned this, it simply slipped my mind, but Julianne’s parents had spoiled her, she was never told no as a child. I confronted her parents before; they had explained to me that when their daughter had done wrong there was no punishment. The worst she had ever gotten was a scolding. I always kind of assumed that this was the case. So when a masked hero comes in to tell her that she can’t do something—in the roughest way possible, might I add--she’d up her game to make this person return. And of course, later on in his career, Mr. Blake had gone on to bigger things. One example being during the 50’s when he worked for the government itself. Hence why she decided to be put on their radar. And she was determined to do this by any means necessary.**

  Another figure had made its’ way to the rooftop, this is where Edward Blake—The Comedian—would come into the picture.

  Julianne was still stalking around on the rooftop, unaware of the new presence, or at least, she was unaware until he opened his mouth.

 

___________________

  “Now what the hell is a pretty thing like you doin’ up here?” Julianne, startled, stood and looked around. She had never been caught before and she wasn’t quite sure what to do. She caught sight of the man sitting on the ledge of the rooftop.

  “Who the fuck are you?” She spat. He simply chuckled at this, even though he found no amusement in her rudeness—in fact, it only angered him.

  “Wow, kid, you kiss your mother with that mouth?” He taunted, not bothering to get up. She found herself unable to answer the man, yet, she made a rather stereotypical move; she rolled her eyes.

  She analyzed him thoroughly. He was young, but he was definitely older than her. He was—at least—in his early to mid-twenties. Julianne felt threatened by his presence, though she wasn’t sure why. Hell, he didn’t even seem like he wanted to hurt her, and if he did, then he was extremely good at hiding it.

  He sat there with a playful expression on his face.

  “Look, let’s make a deal, you hand me the jewels… we forget that this ever happened…” He watched as Julianne walked up to him. The moon revealed a young woman to him. Her figure was wrapped in a tight leather cat-suit that hugged her in the right places—to him. He couldn’t help but stare for a few moments before searching for the words he had lost.

 “and maybe in a few years you can call me and we could-” He couldn’t finish. Julianne, at that point, had heard enough. She had wasted enough time, but now she had to get out of there. Her fist collided with his cheek hard enough to almost throw him off of the roof. She had run off before he could sit back up.

  Of course, it didn’t take long for Eddie to catch up to the fleeing thief. His large hand had gripped onto her upper arm quickly, and in a bruising manner, then he pulled. She collapsed to the ground behind him and the jewels had fallen out of her hand. He moved in order to grab them, but Julianne had other plans.

  “What is wrong with you? I’m a girl you can’t do that!” She had hollered, hoping to catch him off guard, which she did, but not in the way she had hoped.

  “Really? You’re pulling that card on me? Okay, here; so what-oof” Her leg had come up, only to hit him in the stomach. She got up and scrambled for the bag that was laying limply on the concrete a few feet away from her. Eddie was recovering quickly, and she knew that if she kept this up they’d be there all night.

  Anger was boiling quickly within Eddie. He couldn’t understand why he was going so easy on her. Maybe it was because she was right and that she **_was a girl_** and that he really couldn’t do that, but Eddie _despised_ the mere thought of going soft for **that** reason. But that didn’t matter, because he would soon find it easy to take this anger out on others… but they wouldn’t be her.

____________________________

 

**_-A note on Edward Blake:_ **

**_Edward Blake, or “The Comedian,” had an obvious soft spot for Julianne Richards. Even as her acts became more violent and—in my opinion—needy. I’ve heard rumors about the two having a relationship, and if it had happened I wouldn’t have been surprised. I had asked Dr. Stephens about this, and she had told me that she believed the two were enamored with each other._ **

****

**_-An exert from Dr. Stephen’s journal:_ **

_Julianne has definitely fallen for the man who put her in prison in the first place. From the sounds of it, there might have been something going on that she hasn’t let me in on yet. When other medical staff examine the many victims of Mr. Blake I see what he’s capable of, and often I find myself wondering why he brings in Ms. Richards with no more than a bruise or two, maybe even the occasional scratch on her arm from the concrete. She’s never needed extreme medical attention like the others have, which leads me to believe that she and him have found some sort of balance within each other. And worst of all, she has figured out that the more things she does, the more he will come to stop her. I have reason to believe that this is no more than a rouse to get his attention, and it must stop._

  And in the note I provided earlier, it’s been proven that Julianne hurt all of those people to get the attention of The Comedian; her just-as-chaotic counterpart. It would be easy to see why the two became as fond of each other as they did. After a while, it became clear to even me that she was acting like a lovesick teen, but in her own sick way.

 

__________________

 

  She was already running, and he was ready to fight once more. Eddie’s hand grasped at her wrist, wrapping around the skin tight leather of her glove in a grip that would give a boa constrictor a run for its money. He pulled her back once more, but this time she was smart enough to throw her bag full of treasures over the building ledge and onto the streets below.

  She fell back onto him; the force of the collision was enough to knock them both over onto the concrete. Anger bubbled beneath the surface of her skin and sunk deep into her muscles. She began to think irrationally, and she decided to attack.

  She turned around in his lap, forced him onto his back, and let her fists fly.

  Leather came into contact with skin over and over. She moved extremely fast and put all her weight into each hit. The first thing she bloodied was his nose, then she bruised his cheeks, split his lip open. She became absolutely ruthless for no reason other than she lost what she had stolen. In her eyes it was his fault; so she took it out on him.

  All he could do was lay there in shock. It all had happened so quick. He had her wrist, he pulled and next thing he knew she was on him beating the absolute piss out of him. He didn’t see the gems get thrown off of the roof. This time it was his turn to get angry.

  Just as her fist was coming down for another hit, his hand had lunged upward to grab at it. There was a struggle at first, but eventually he had grabbed ahold of both her arms. He then threw her off of him. She hit the ground hard enough to knock the wind out of her.

  Eddie stood and wiped the blood from his swelling face onto his glove. He inspected how much was on the glove for a moment before returning his attention to the girl laying on the ground before him. He was extremely tempted to beat her just as badly as she did to him, but refrained from doing so.

  She began to rise, pushing herself up on her forearms before putting her weight on her palms. She was still wheezing and gasping for air.

  “My fucking things.” She panted before shifting her gaze upward.

  “You made me lose my things.” She blamed. Eddie rolled his eyes at her. She got to her feet and began to walk towards him, this did not threaten him though. Instead he simply moved away from her and grabbed her hand again.

  “Sorry sweetheart, normally I don’t break out the cuffs until the fifth date but… you’re leaving me with no choice.” He said with a slightly humorous tone, yet there were traces of a darker and angrier emotion within his words. However, this did not deter Julianne. Just as he got the first cuff on her right wrist, she whirled around and elbowed him in the stomach. That was when she escaped.

___________________

 

  Edward Blake claimed to have let her go on that first night because she had given him “too much trouble” and that “there were more things to be done than sit there all night and fight with a petty thief.” But the funny thing about that is… if he wanted to he could have knocked her out. He had done it to guys bigger than him and twice his age, and all of them were thieves. Many believe that he purposefully let her go, and that they didn’t actually fight. Although, there were some people—like close friends—saw the damage that Ms. Richards had dealt and could confirm that he had actually fought her.

   But did he let her go to save himself the trouble, or did he hope to see her again?


	2. A reflection on Julianne's home status

   Julianne’s criminal activity had increased after her first encounter with Blake. And while her offences at this time were less serious than her future crimes, it was still rather worrying for those who cared for her.

  Later on in her life, she had moved in with her friends Jessie Thompson and Amanda Bradford. After interviewing them, I found out that she had wonderful and caring friends who often worried about her.

  **_“Julie was a troublemaker.”_** Amanda begins after I had asked about Julianne’s personality when she wasn’t in costume.

  **_“In the beginning, she didn’t really change personalities when she wasn’t in costume. I mean, the only difference really was that she wasn’t stealing things as Julianne. She was still absolutely out of control. Or at least, in my opinion she was.”_**

  And while Ms. Bradford felt uneasy about Richard’s behavior, Jessie Thompson had her own feelings about this behavior:

  **_“It didn’t really bother me. Jay was living her own life and we were living ours. Although, I’ll admit, we did like the amount of money she brought in when she pawned her “earnings.””_**

_______________________

 

  Amanda had waited for Julianne that night. She never really approved of what she chose to do, but she knew that she couldn’t stop her.

  Julianne came home that night around four in the morning. Amanda’s slouched form was nothing but a silhouette to Julianne, yet she could tell who it was sleeping in the armchair. The curtains were drawn back from the window, lights from the city flooded into the room and lit up the left side of Amanda’s face and spread itself along the floor. She entered the living room and turned on the lamp that rested in the corner, next to the doorway.

  She snickered when she saw her, her head rested on her fist, which pushed her right cheek up toward her eye. Her head looked like it was going to fall onto the arm of her chair at any moment, but she knew that it wasn’t going to happen. Instead, she walked up to her and shook her shoulder gently.

  “Manda.” She whispered, causing Amanda to stir but not wake up. So she tried again, and again. After five tries, she was successful. Amanda’s eyes had opened slowly at first, but when she saw Julianne standing in front of her, dressed up in her costume, she woke up fully.

  “What time is it?” Amanda asked, her chocolate colored hair was in her eyes. Lazily, her hand came up to her face to brush back the strands. Julianne looked over at the clock that hung on the beige-colored wall over their old and worn couch.

  “About four-thirty.” Julianne answered. Amanda sat up straight and stared at her friend. She could see the scrapes and burns from when she landed on the concrete and was immediately alarmed. While she had always assumed that one day someone would catch on and try to stop Julie, she thought she’d see her in the holding cell of the local police station after an encounter, not standing there in the middle of their living room with a small, minor wound on her shoulder nonetheless.

  “What the fuck happened to you? Where have you been?” Amanda asked in her usual worried, motherly tone. Julianne shrugged.

  “Out.” She told her. Amanda disliked her vague answer.

  “You know how I feel about this.”

  “I know.”

  “You can’t keep going out every night expecting to get away like this. I mean, what if they followed you.” Julianne rolled her eyes at her nagging.

  “Who? Who would have followed me, Amanda?” She asked, suddenly frustrated. Amanda stood and pointed to her shoulder.

  “Whoever gave you that, that’s who.” Julianne looked at the red, irritated skin that was surrounded by the white remnants of the skin that was dug up when she skidded across the rooftop. She glared at her shoulder before returning her gaze back to her friend, who wanted to do nothing more than help her.

  “You always nag until I bring in the money from the shit I stole.” She told the shorter girl. Amanda looked at Julianne and noticed that there were no jewels.

  “And where are the things you stole?” She asked smugly. The blonde froze.

  “In my suit.” She lied.

  “Uh huh. So, tell me, why did you just now decide to hide jewels in your suit?” Now she was pressing. Julianne began to walk away, toward the hallway that was only a few feet away from the two of them.

  “Where are you going?”

  “I’m going to change.”

  “Get back here.” Julianne didn’t listen and as Amanda followed her to her room, she closed the door on her.

  “We aren’t done here!” She shouted, banging her fist only once on the door. Amanda didn’t realize how loud she was being.

  In her room, Julianne unzipped her cat-suit and stepped out of it before observing the wound on her shoulder. It would definitely hurt her for the next few days to come, but it would heal in time. Instead of focusing on her next heist, she drifted off to sleep with thoughts of the mysterious hero who came to stop her.

 

_________________________

 

  Julianne and Amanda had many arguments in the past, but, when asked about the one that stood out to her the most, she responded with the first night Julianne came home without jewels. Instead of fighting about how wrong it was to steal, they fought about her getting caught.

  **“In the back of my mind, I thought of all the different laws we were breaking by just letting her stay with us. That’s what I thought of that night as I fell asleep in my armchair. We were aiding and imbedding a criminal, even if she hadn’t been caught yet. I just… I just felt so guilty.”**

Amanda’s father was a retired cop. As a young girl, she always did the right thing and often avoided breaking laws. How she got involved with Ms. Richards was a mystery. Although, according to Bradford, they had been friends since the third grade and had been inseparable since. Of course, that began to change as they got older and Richards pursued her criminal career. Eventually, in 1965, Amanda Bradford and Jessie Thompson kicked Ms. Richards out of their three-bedroom apartment.

  With the inability to get a job due to one previous arrest, Julianne was stuck having to construct a new plan, but it did not involve Edward Blake. She pursued a relationship with the billionaire…

 

  The next morning, Jessie and Amanda sat at the circular wooden table in their relatively small kitchen. Julianne had not woken up yet. As the time flew by, Amanda grew impatient and angry as she waited for the third girl to wake up.

  “I can’t believe her. She stayed out all night and now she’s going to sleep all day while we slave away at **our** jobs and at home. The least she could do is clean this place up a bit while we’re at work.” Amanda ranted as she looked at their kitchen. Dishes were piled up in the sink and the mail was scattered all over the counter. Jessie stood and began to collect the flyers off of the table and stacked them.

  “No. Sit down, this isn’t your job.” Amanda told her. Jessie looked over her shoulder sharply at the smaller girl who was still seated at the table.

  “You’re saying that like Jay hasn’t been doing anything when we’re gone.” She told her. Amanda crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair.

  “Because she hasn’t.” Jessie scoffed and slammed the papers down onto the counter.

  “Just because you’re never home to see it doesn’t mean she doesn’t do anything. Jeez Manda, you act so high and mighty even though you never lift a damn finger around here. These dishes, you, the coats hanging off of the ledge over there, all yours. The flyers over here, yes, I’ll admit, their mine, but don’t you dare go pointing fingers at Jay. Hell, she brings in more money than what we make in five months. The reason we can afford living here is because all three of us pitch in. Like it or not, we need her and that money.” Jessie says, forcing Amanda to silence. Jessie was a tall girl with shoulder-length blonde hair and dark eyes, and, when she wasn’t messing around, was a mature young girl who was a year younger than Julianne. All three of the girls were still in high school, but they balanced their lives out very well. Jessie had a part-time job at the local bookstore which paid the minimum wage of 75 cents an hour.

  Amanda, on the other hand, was a thin, small girl with green eyes and brown hair. She was a year older than Julianne and two years older than Jessie. She worked two different jobs, one at the nearby florist’s, and the other as a waitress at Marty’s Diner. They both paid minimum wage.

  By the time the girls had gotten their pay checks after two weeks, they’d have two dollars and twenty-five cents. By the end of the month they’d have four dollars and fifty cents. When it came down to how much their rent was, they needed Julianne. She’d pay the rent and they’d buy the food. In a way, Amanda was lashing out because she knew that they’d miss a payment if Julianne didn’t make up for what she lost the night before.

 

__________________

 

  Needless to say, the next few years in Julianne’s early criminal career were not quite as exciting as the days to come. She had many other encounters with Edward Blake, but only one time stood out from the rest.

 

**-A note from Dr. Stephens:**

**I remember Julianne’s arrest quite well. She wasn’t sent to an asylum or anything like that, they just wanted me to evaluate her to make sure she would be sent to the right place. She was just a thief, after all, so I didn’t think much of it. But the more and more she told me about her crimes and encounters with The Comedian, the more I realized how they had both gone easy on each other. There were similarities in the way they both worked, and I could tell that there was no getting rid of Julianne Richards just yet.**

  This, however, was her first arrest, and it was for thievery. She was going to be sentenced for 25 years, but was let out on parole. This had to have been their biggest mistake.

****


	3. Arrest

  According to Dr. Stephens, on the night of Julianne Richards’ first arrest, it was storming. This is an exert from my first interview with Dr. Stephens where I asked her about her first impression of the woman we would come to know as Anarchist:

    ** _Q: Can you explain what you were doing on the night of Ms. Richards’ first arrest?_**

    ** _A: I was there to look after a patient who was being moved from the prison to an asylum close by, as a matter of fact I was instructed to follow them until they made it to said asylum. They had to transfer their papers from the precinct, so we were stuck waiting. And then he brought her in._**

**_Q: Can you describe the weather that night?_ **

**_A: You could hear the thunder from inside the precinct. It was pouring outside._ **

**_Q: And what did she look like when The Comedian brought her in?_ **

**_A: She was soaked to the bone. Her hair clung to her face and made her look even more pitiful._ **

**_Q: Were there any wounds or broken bones?_ **

**_A: No. She didn’t have a scratch on her. Only a bruise on her cheek._ **

**_Q: Would you say that this was different from previous criminals Mr. Blake had brought in?_ **

**_A: Yes._ **

**_Q: According to Ms. Richards, how many encounters did she have with him before he finally brought her in?_ **

**_A: Twenty-seven. It sounds like a lot but this was over the span of two years._ **

**_Q: And he only brought her in on the twenty-eighth encounter?_ **

**_A: That is correct._ **

**_Q: And what was she in for?_ **

**_A: Charges of breaking and entering and burglary._ **

**_Q: Hm. That’s different from her latest arrest, is it not?_ **

**_A: Everyone has to start somewhere, Mr. Cunningham, and Julianne Richards is no exception. She started as a mere jewel thief, but it all changed after that night._ **

**_Q: How so?_ **

**_A: Well, for one, after she was let out on parole she seemingly disappeared. She came back with a bang, but no one could tell it was her. She wasn’t big enough of a criminal beforehand to be recognized. They never did an article on her capture, so no one knew who she was._ **

****

_____________________

****

  The night was ten times darker than it normally was as the sky opened up and drooled on the world below it. Rain pattered on the windows of apartments and homes and office buildings all across the city. From the inside looking out, it looked like a haze that went over the bright lights and dulled them to the point where the inside of a house that was dark wasn’t illuminated from the outside. Instead, it was dark and hazardous.

  Julianne watched the rain come down from the inside of a foreign apartment, a new bag of precious and valuable jewelry in her left hand while her right rested on the windowsill. She had to wait for the weather to calm itself.

  When she had arrived in the dark home, the weather was normal if not a bit breezy. She was able to enter the apartment without worrying about the constant sound of water pounding on the ground outside waking the residents of said apartment. Now, she was stuck inside an unfamiliar setting waiting for the rain to calm itself.

  A set of eyes watched her silhouette from the corner of the room, next to the armchair and wall that separated the living room from the kitchen. There was a quick flash of light in the dark, one that she didn’t notice, and then it was out and replaced with the soft, red gleam of a lit cigar.

  The pungent stench of cigar smoke filled the room in no time and alerted the thief. There was another presence in the room and she knew that she had to get out of there.

  “Hey there, kid.” A familiar voice echoed through the house. He could see her move her head to look at him, even though he couldn’t see her face in the darkness.

  “Shut the fuck up. You’ll get us caught.” She whispered in a tone filled with worry. Eddie chuckled at her statement and stepped into the pale light that shone through the window.

  “No one’s here, sweetheart.” He told her. Her eyes widened as she looked around.

  “But…”

  “Staged the whole thing, babe. The ‘people’ in the bedroom were pillows. I thought you were smarter than this, pumpkin.” He stated tauntingly. She frowned at the names he used when referring to her.

  “Don’t do that.” She ordered while getting up.

  “Do what?”

  “The pet names. They’re awful, and quite frankly, kind of creepy.” She explained while making her way to the armchair. Eddie reached over and hit the lights, thus revealing each other once more.

  “You changed your costume.” She mentioned. She was only pointing out the obvious. He had changed his costume a few months prior to this meeting. Instead of his usual all-yellow with purple scattered throughout, he wore a black tank top with cargo pants of the same color. Straps came up from his belt and connected to two shoulder pads that were decorated in the patriotic colors of red, white, and blue. He seemed to have ditched the mask.

  “Yeah. Like it?” He asked her in a smug tone.

  “I don’t care, actually. I was just pointing it out.” She said coyly as she crossed her arms over her chest which put her in a position that made it seem like she was pouting. They sat in silence for a while. She was waiting for him to say something and he was waiting for her to try to escape. Neither one of them did what they were expecting.

  Eddie sat down on the couch across from her, quietly, his eyes never left her form. His movements echoed a predator circling its’ prey, but she wasn’t intimidated—no—she sat there, her face even and showing signs of disinterest.

  Words failed here as well.

  They sat, staring at each other intently from their respected sides of the room, refusing to say a word. Two years had passed, she knew it and she was sure he took note of that as well—she could see it in his eyes, she could feel it. If he wanted to, he could have her. She was eighteen now, and even though you wouldn’t be able to tell, she wouldn’t stop him. With that thought finally showing on her face, he spoke.

  “How much did you take?” He asked. She held up a relatively full bag and shook it, causing it to emit a small jingling sound.

  “What do you think? Care to take a guess?” She taunted. Eddie, however, took this seriously.

  “What will I get if I win?” Julianne’s smirk fell from her face.

  “Excuse me?” She asked. He leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees.

  “You told me to guess. I want to know what I’ll get if I win.” Only one thought echoed through both of their minds:

  _“Two years have passed.”_

____________________________

 

  As confirmed by Ms. Richards herself, the night of her arrest had taken a rather… sexual turn. It all began, according to her, with a game proposed by Edward Blake. He would get three guesses as to how much was in the bag, if he won he’d get a kiss. Of course, Ms. Richards knew that this encounter wouldn’t end with just a kiss, and she was right.

_______________________

 

  “How about… if I win… I get to kiss you.” He proposed. She glared at him, annoyance building up within her as she watched him sit there smugly.

  “Deal.” She answered, much to his surprise.

  “That’s it?” He asked, shocked. She shook her head.

  “You get three guesses.” She explained.

  “You must really want to kiss me if you’re giving me more than one chance…” He muttered before looking at the dangling bag once more. The contents of said bag:

  -A diamond-encrusted bracelet

  -Two sets of diamond earrings

  -Five sterling-silver rings

  -800 dollars, all twenties.

 

  Eddie eyed the bag and said the first thing that came to mind:

  “All the jewelry and half the money.”

  He was wrong.

  “Two more guesses.” She said tauntingly. He looked up at her, the look of slight frustration and annoyance present in his eyes. She then decided to stay quiet.

  “Half the jewelry and a quarter of the money.”

  “One more guess.” He didn’t succeed the last time, either. She lowered the bag to look at him. He didn’t have a clear expression on his face, and it seemed like he didn’t care.

  Next thing she knew, she was getting up and making her way toward the couch and sitting herself next to him. He looked at her from the corner of his eye. She took the initiative and planted a sweet and innocent kiss on his cheek, his rough stubble scratched at her lips. It was over in a matter of seconds, though. She drew back, a light pink tinting her pale cheeks out of embarrassment.

   “A consolation prize…” She muttered. He, however, took this as an opportunity. He grabbed her chin and made her look at him once more before pressing his lips to hers. He expected a fight, but didn’t get one.

  Two years had passed.

  She was ready…

 

         He didn’t care.

 

  After this moment, things became more heated. Her cat-suit had come off, as well as his pants. She was laying below him on the couch, panting, while his hands and lips roamed her body. He was rough and unforgiving in everything he did, and this should have signaled what was to come, both in this session and in the rest of their lives.

  His hand roamed toward her underwear and slipped underneath the waistband without her noticing. She moaned out when his fingers had entered her slick folds. He brought her to one orgasm before he had decided that she was ready. He grabbed ahold of her panties and pulled them off of her. She kept them around her left ankle as he spread her legs.

  The night was filled with the sounds of her soft moaning. It was then and there, on that light blue couch, where they had slept together. It was in that foreign apartment where Edward Blake took her virginity. It was in that apartment when she had realized how much she loved Edward.

  The masks didn’t come off.

  They laid there as the clock struck three and the sweet, small chimes flooded the apartment. Eddie was laying on the edge of the couch, Julianne under his arm, her head on his chest and her body pressed to his. They had stayed like that, fighting off drowsiness in the calm of the night. She had to get home, he had to take her in.

  He had gotten dressed first. He made sure to conceal the handcuffs he had brought with him, because he knew how this was going to end. He had to do it, there was no choice. He had to cut this off. He let her go so many times, it was time to put an end to this. He got what he wanted, so it was time to forget about her.

  She got up finally, slipping back into her cat-suit. Even after everything that had happened, she was still a little shy about her nakedness. She rolled on her gloves before going for her bag, but it was gone. And in place of said bag, was a cuff on her right wrist. She looked up immediately to see Eddie beside her, the other cuff in his hand.

  “Sorry, kid.” He said in an unapologetic tone. She felt a small part of her ache at the betrayal, but it was a very small part of her, the general feeling she had was anger. She was furious.

  Her left fist swung upward, but this time Eddie knew to dodge it. This time, he knew to put the other cuff on it.

  “I thought…” She couldn’t finish. She couldn’t bring herself to finish.

 

  He brought her into the station, she went willingly after he had gotten the handcuffs on her. Both of them were soaked from the constant, never-ending cascade of rain. It was the perfect conditions to hide tears, of course, but it wasn’t enough to hide puffy, red eyes.

  The station was small and cramped. Several desks were found around the room, all of them covered in stacks of papers. A small holding cell was found in the back of the room, in the corner.

  It didn’t take long for Eddie to hand her over. He did it easily with no guilt whatsoever. After all, he had everything he wanted. He had her and now he has the stuff she stole. However, as they made their way to the precinct, she asked him of one favor.

  “The cash. You don’t need it.” She said to him. He looked at her pitiful form, soaked, hair clinging to her face.

  “How do you know that?” He asked.

  “I just do.” She stated before continuing.

  “If you’re going to lock me up the least you could do is bring the cash to my roommates. They can’t afford the place we’re renting without me. With the cash they’ll have enough for rent this month. Please.” She begged in a solemn tone. Eddie stood there, contemplating her words.

  The processing didn’t take long, and she was stuck in the holding cell for the night. Dr. Stephens approached the cell. She was in her late thirties, but still beautiful. Her hair was a gorgeous, fire-like red that came down to her mid back. Freckles decorated her cheeks and hands.

  “Julianne?” She looked up at the mention of her name. Dr. Stephens was already in the cell.

 


	4. Probation

  “I’m doctor Stephens.” The woman introduced herself. Julianne refused to speak, instead she merely crossed her arms and sat back.

  “Don’t worry, I’m just here to make sure you don’t have any serious injuries.” She explained. The younger woman huffed in response.

  “Does it look like I need medical attention, doc? What’re you really in here for?” Julianne asked.

  “Well, when The Comedian comes in with someone… er… he isn’t known for being the gentlest with criminals. To be honest, I’m quite shocked you came in the way you did and not unconscious.” Julianne looked away.

  “Look doc, I appreciate your concern but I’m fine. I don’t wanna talk right now, so if you wouldn’t mind I kinda wanna be left alone.” She told the doctor. Dr. Stephens just shrugged.

  “I don’t have a say in this. It’s just routine.” Dr. Stephens placed her clipboard down on the bench and then sat next to the girl. Julianne refused to look at Dr. Stephens, which had made things a bit difficult. She would look at the girl’s wrists and arms (after removing her gloves, of course) and legs. She couldn’t seem to find any broken bones, which was always good, but it was a rarity for a man like The Comedian to go easy on someone.

  She moved Julianne’s hair and noticed something… off. She had no other signs of bruising on the rest of her visible body, but she could see the distinct reddish-purple of a bruise on her neck. Or at least, she hoped it was a bruise. She pulled the collar of her cat suit down a bit to get a better look at the mark. Her fingers gently grazed it before she spoke.

  “What happened here?” She asked. Julianne shifted away from her.

  “Please, I need you to cooperate.” The doctor begged.

  “It’s nothing doc, just ignore it, I’m fine.” She snapped. Dr. Stephens just looked at the girl in her pitiful state and connected the dots herself. She stood without saying a word, knowing that it was probably best to keep to herself and just tell them that she was fine. She left the slightly cramped holding cell and disappeared for the rest of the night.

 

__________________________

 

  Julianne stood trial a few weeks later and was found guilty. She was sentenced to twenty-five years, but she was released after 5 years on probation for good behavior. However, after her release, she found herself coming back to Dr. Stephens often. After all, she was a psychiatrist. The two would talk often, most notably, after she had committed a heinous act.

_________________

 

**_Q: When was the first time Ms. Richards visited you after she was released on probation._ **

**_A: In 1961._ **

**_Q: Was this before or after she went into hiding?_ **

**_A: She never went into hiding. She just laid low and with the right people._ **

**_Q: Are you referring to her relationship with Adrian Veidt?_ **

**_A: Yes, I am. Although, she didn’t bring him up until 1962. She latched to him, as she told me, because he had money. Her friends didn’t want her back and she found it hard to find a job. She said that she did like him and that he was attractive enough._ **

**_Q: And yet, in the end, he wasn’t so nice to her._ **

**_A: Well, what do you expect? He was once a hero, and he still is the world’s smartest man. He was going to piece it together eventually._ **

**_Q: I suppose. So, your first meeting with her._ **

**_A: Ah yes. She had just gotten out. She broke into my home._ **

**_Q: And you didn’t call the cops?_ **

**_A: No. I knew troubled youth, and she was definitely that. She probably had nowhere else to go. I remembered her telling me that her friends had been kicked out of their apartment while she was gone, but they had found a new one. She wasn’t welcome there. And she didn’t want to track her parents down, wherever the hell they were at the time. So, she found my place. She never explained how she did, but it didn’t matter. I wanted to help her._ **

**_Q: How long did you let her stay with you?_ **

**_A: Until she moved in with Mr. Veidt. 1963._ **

**_Q: She was definitely active as the Anarchist by then though. Did you know?_ **

**_A: I didn’t want to believe it._ **

**_Q: But you knew._ **

**_A: It was hard not to. She looked so similar to the pictures, aside from her hair, which was naturally curly. I knew that she probably straightened it before going out._ **

**_Q: So you didn’t say anything to the police. You didn’t give any tips?_ **

**_A: No. I-_ **

**_Q: It’s okay, take your time._ **

**_A: I know I should have. So many people died because I refused to believe that she was doing those things._ **

****

______________________

 

  The sun was out and shining, as was Julianne. She had just left the prison, and now she was on her way to see Amanda and Jess. Their previous apartment had been abandoned, which was a bit saddening to Julianne, but she figured it was going to happen one day, considering how many people lived there.

  Julianne walked up the steps to the new apartment, which was a bit nicer than their previous one. She reached the door which read 103, and knocked. It had been five long years since she had seen her friends, and she missed them. She wanted to know how they were doing. She wanted to know if they missed her just as much as she missed them.

  The door swung open and Amanda stood in the doorway, her brown hair up in a ponytail and she wore a light blue robe. Her eyes widened at the sight of Julianne, her mouth agape as she went to scream for Jess, but all of that faded in an instant. She looked stern all of a sudden, but in her eyes, Julianne could see the look of betrayal.

  “Oh. Hello.” Amanda stated coldly. Julianne kept her smile, still ecstatic to see her less than enthusiastic friend.

  “Manda, it’s me.”

  “I know. Who says you’re welcome here?” Just as she said this, Jess stepped behind her. She smiled widely.

  “Jay!” She exclaimed happily. Amanda closed her eyes and silently waited for Jess to calm down before speaking again.

  “You should come in! Manda, get out of the way.” Jess demanded. Amanda looked back at her.

  “We aren’t letting her in.”

  “Shut up and get out of the way.” Amanda sighed, listening to her roommate and stepping out of the way. As soon as Julianne stepped in, Jess lunged herself at her, wrapping her arms around her neck and bringing her into a hug.

  “I’m so glad you’re back.” Jess stated, her voice loud in Julianne’s ear. She let go of her and closed the door, leaving Julianne some time to look around their new apartment.

  The living room was medium sized, with a nice kitchen next to it. There was a counter separating the two rooms, but there was a doorway leading into the kitchen. To her left was a hallway, where there were three doors. Julianne felt a glimmer of hope surface at the sight of the third door. She wondered if they were waiting for her.

  “So, when did you guys move?” She asked.

  “About five years ago.” Julianne felt her heart drop at this. She wondered what could have happened, why they weren’t able to stay there. Was this place any better rent wise? She looked back at Amanda.

  “We couldn’t afford the rent. I went back home for a year, as did Jess. We both worked our butts off to get this place. We’ve both been working two jobs.” Julianne was at a loss for words. _How could that have happened?_ She wondered. She knew that Eddie took the jewels, but she wanted him to bring it to Jess and Amanda. Of course he didn’t; he was nothing but a selfish prick who did whatever he wanted.

  Suddenly, she felt sick to her stomach.

  “But I…” She trailed off, unable to comprehend what had happened.

  “I’m so sorry.” She apologized. Amanda walked toward the hallway.

  “Yeah, you should be.” And with that, Amanda stormed off into her room. Julianne stood there, holding a bag full of her things with jess standing behind her, and they stood in silence. Julianne had seen Amanda that mad before, but never had she been so cold toward her. She seemed so unforgiving.

  “She took this really hard, if you couldn’t tell.” Julianne looked at Jess. She was quieter now, a hint of sadness present in her voice.

  Julianne left shortly after getting their number. Jess told her what time she should call, and told her that if Amanda answered she should probably hang up.

  Now she had nowhere left to go. She was stuck on the streets again, which she really didn’t want. She found herself thinking as she wandered the city, hoping that she could find someone from recent memory to stay with.

  She knew that Eddie was a no, that was for sure. She barely wanted anything to do with him, despite how attractive he might have seemed.

  She had no clue where her parents were. They had split up back in 1950, and she wouldn’t be able to find them now. For all she knew, they could be half way across the country.

  She thought she had no one, but then she remembered.

  Around ten o’clock that night, Dr. Stephens had returned home. She let out a sigh of relief as she entered the doorway, placing her keys in a dish next to the door. She stared for a few moments; she felt like something was off. The room was cleaner than she remembered it being. Her shoes were lined up in the small hallway where her door was, and her sweater that she normally wore in the morning was on the coatrack to her left, which she didn’t put there.

  She stepped into her dark living room, looking around for any other signs of an intruder. She reached out to her right, turning on the small lamp on the table next to her couch, and jumped at the sight of someone asleep on her loveseat.

  There was a girl, sleeping there. Her back was facing Dr. Stephens, and she was curled around herself. Dr. Stephens approached the girl slowly, wondering why she was there, but that was when she saw her.

  This was no ordinary girl. She was the thief she met a few years back. Her heart ached as she realized what was probably going on. Instead of waking her, she walked over to the hallway and opened a closet, which held spare blankets. She grabbed one and brought it to the girl, gently draping it over her curled frame.

  She’d talk to her in the morning.

____________________

 

  Julianne would reside at Dr. Stephens’s home until 1963. She would continue her criminal career during this time, and she would graduate from petty thievery to much bigger things within time.

  Was all of it to catch Edward Blake’s attention? Or was it her acting out against a society that threw her away so easily?


End file.
